NEW — 5 p.m. Jan. 12, 2015

The Newcastle Chamber of Commerce will kick off 2015 with its first luncheon of the year Jan. 14.

Puget Sound Energy representatives will be on hand talking about the company’s myPSE mobile app which gives customers the opportunity to report and track power outages.

Keri Pravitz, Puget Sound Energy community projects manager, and Andy Swayne, municipal liaison manager, will answer questions, as well.

The January luncheon begins at 11 a.m. Jan. 12 at Tapatio Mexican Grill. The cost is $20 for chamber members and $25 for non-members.

Learn more here.

Sue Stronk. Larry Johnson. Jessaca Jacobson. Sonny Putter.

With the exception of the last name, you’ve likely never heard of these people. But make no mistake, the Newcastle City Council knows who they are, at least they should.

They are examples of just a few Newcastle residents who have come to at least one council meeting in the past year to voice their opinions.

They are, essentially, examples of democracy in action, a far too rare scene witnessed in the perpetually empty Newcastle council chambers.

Stronk and Johnson are vocal Olympus residents speaking out against Puget Sound Energy’s power-upgrade project; Jacobson is a Newport Woods resident who voiced a community’s concerns about a new apartment complex; and Putter, a former Newcastle mayor, is the constant presence at recent meetings challenging the council’s Coal Creek Utility District purchase-sale agreement.

More importantly, though, they are all residents getting involved in the place they call home and, hopefully, working to affect decisions.

Whether they are successful or not remains to be seen, but at least they are taking a stand for what they believe in, something we’d like to see more of from residents at meetings.

Remember, your government leaders — city, county, state and federal — work for you.

If you want to have a stake in this city, take a stand. Attend meetings and public hearings to weigh in on decisions.

A slew of Eastside cities are ready to take the next step in exploring Puget Sound Energy’s Energize Eastside project.

Led by the city of Bellevue, Redmond, Kirkland, Renton and Newcastle will work together to provide an environmental review of PSE’s proposal to build about 18 miles of high-capacity electric transmission lines from Renton to Redmond.

The Energize Eastside Environmental Impact Statement is a legally mandated process that will critically evaluate potential significant environmental impacts associated with the project and project alternatives.

It begins in earnest this month with a 45-day comment period, highlighted by five community scoping meetings where residents are invited to share their thoughts about Energize Eastside.

“I view it as one of the most, if not the most, critical projects on the radar for Newcastle,” said Tim McHarg, Newcastle’s director of community development. “So we’re hoping that a broad cross-section of folks will come and attend.”

Newcastle’s meeting is from 6-8 p.m. May 28 at Newcastle Elementary School, but all are welcome to attend any of the four other meetings held in Bellevue, Kirkland and Renton, McHarg said.

McHarg described the meetings as part forum, part open house. Meetings will be divided into two rooms, with one serving as an informational space staffed by different city employees and the EIS consultant, while the other room offers a place to respond and comment on the project.

Court stenographers will take verbal testimony, while comment cards will be provided to anyone who prefers to write their thoughts, McHarg said. If residents want to wait and offer thoughts later, there will be a means to do that through the project website, www.energizeeastsideeis.org, until the initial scoping period ends June 15.

Puget Sound Energy officials will attend the meetings, though McHarg stressed that “they will have a table, but they will not be the ones providing the information.” Meetings will be set up such that if people want to interface with just city staff and consultants, they can, he said.

“This really is the opportunity for people to get engaged in the process,” McHarg said. “Up to this point, the only process has been what’s been sponsored and run by PSE itself. This is really the first time independent cities will offer a process for people to get engaged.”

PSE introduced the Energize Eastside project about a year ago in response to the region’s growing power needs.

It initially offered 16 potential route segments for the power lines that could be configured in 19 ways.

In a process that many decried, especially locally, the Energize Eastside Community Advisory Group — comprised of neighborhood, business and civic leaders — offered its route recommendations in December 2014.

Both included Route M, which goes through Newcastle.

The EIS will take place in two primary phases. Phase 1 includes an environmental review that will describe the transmission capacity deficiency that outlines the Energize Eastside need, and evaluate the potential environmental impacts of various approaches to meeting that need.

Phase 2 involves a more specific and detailed review of a smaller number of alternatives based on outcomes from Phase 1.

Each phase will include a scoping process to determine the specific project alternatives and aspects of the environment that should be studied in detail in the EIS.

“It’s the best way for residents to get their input into this really critical project for Newcastle and the Eastside,” McHarg said of the upcoming scoping meetings.

“If they want to impact the issues and the analysis, that initial scoping comment period is really critical for folks. Once the comment period for Phase 1 ends on June 15, we’re going to start our analysis in earnest.”

NEW — 5:15 p.m. May 27, 2015

The fourth of five Energize Eastside scoping meetings comes to Newcastle Thursday night.

The meetings are a part of the Energize Eastside Environmental Impact Statement, a legally mandated process that will critically evaluate potential significant environmental impacts associated with the project and project alternatives.

It began in earnest this month with a 45-day comment period, highlighted by five community scoping meetings where residents are invited to share their thoughts about Energize Eastside.

“I view it as one of the most, if not the most, critical projects on the radar for Newcastle,” said Tim McHarg, Newcastle’s director of community development. “So we’re hoping that a broad cross-section of folks will come and attend.”

Newcastle’s meeting is from 6-8 p.m. May 28 at Newcastle Elementary School.

McHarg described the meetings as part forum, part open house. Meetings will be divided into two rooms, with one serving as an informational space staffed by different city employees and the EIS consultant, while the other room offers a place to respond and comment on the project.

Led by the city of Bellevue, Redmond, Kirkland, Renton and Newcastle will work together to provide an environmental review of PSE’s proposal to build about 18 miles of high-capacity electric transmission lines from Renton to Redmond.

Learn more about the meetings here.

We need more than ‘reasonable’ with PSE’s Energize Eastside

The independent technical consultant hired by the city of Bellevue to assess the need for PSE’s “Energize Eastside” project, U.S.E., was expected to do its own independent future peak load forecast. Instead, it reviewed PSE’s forecast and found it “reasonable.”

If you want a second opinion from a doctor, would you be satisfied if he/she just looked at the medical records from the first doctor and thought her diagnosis was “reasonable”?

What U.S.E. finds “reasonable” is PSE’s new forecast of electricity demand growing at 2.4 percent per year from 2014-2024. By comparison, Seattle City Light is forecasting demand growth of 1.2 percent for Seattle. Why can’t we get independent verification that the Eastside is now growing twice as fast as booming Seattle? That seems totally implausible.

The big mantra for PSE is “reliability.” It’s as if we should double the width of our freeways because once a year there might be a huge traffic jam if both Safeco and CenturyLink stadiums emptied at the same time. Does that sound like sane highway planning?

Are we so lacking resource and imagination that an overkill of poles and wires is the only solution? There are more flexible and less costly alternatives.

Larry Johnson

Newcastle

NEW — 10:40 a.m. July 31, 2015

More than 300 people are without power in Newcastle, according to Puget Sound Energy’s outage map.

The outage’s start time was just before 10 a.m. Friday. Crews are dispatched and the company estimates a noon restoration time.

The cause of the outage is currently unknown.

Get the latest outage updates on the company’s outage map here.

NEW — 11:45 a.m. Aug. 17, 2015

If you want to get a seat at Tuesday’s Newcastle City Council meeting, you better get there early.

Puget Sound Energy’s Energize Eastside project is on the Aug. 18 agenda, and whenever that’s the case, it always draws a large crowd.

Puget Sound Energy and the Coalition of Eastside Neighborhoods for Sensible Energy will both give presentations about the proposed plans to include a new electric substation and higher capacity transmission lines through Newcastle, Redmond, Bellevue, Renton and Kirkland.

Those presentations begin at 6 p.m., an hour before the regular council meeting begins.

The Newcastle City Council canceled its first meeting of the month due to National Night Out, so the Aug. 18 agenda is particularly action-packed.

The council will hear a State of the County address from King County Councilman Reagan Dunn, discuss the assumption of a private road in The Madronas subdivision and more.

The regular Newcastle City Council meeting begins at 7 p.m. Aug. 18 at Newcastle City Hall, 12835 Newcastle Way, Suite 200.

View the full agenda here.

NEW — 11:51 a.m. Aug. 29, 2015

An August windstorm is already causing scattered power outages across the area.

Puget Sound Energy offers up-to-date outage information, including restoration estimates, on its outage map here. Customers can also get the most up-to-date outage information, or report an outage, by downloading the myPSE app for smartphones here.

Do not call 911 if your power is out, unless your safety is at risk. Report the outage to PSE online, or by calling 1-888-225-5773.

During storms, customers should keep an emergency kit handy and stay away from downed power lines, according to advice posted on PSE’s website.

PSE offers these steps to follow during an outage:

• Turn off lights and appliances.
• Leave one light switch on so you’ll know when your power is back on.
• Use flashlights instead of candles.
• Keep your freezer and refrigerator doors closed and open them only when it is necessary.
• Never use a gas range, indoor cooker, charcoal or gas barbecue for heating.
• Close curtains and drapes to keep the heat in.
• Wear warm clothes in layers.

Drivers, remember, if you come to an intersection where the streetlights are out, treat it like a four-way stop.

During a windstorm it’s not uncommon to find downed power lines. PSE says to assume it’s energized and stay as far away as you can before calling 911 or 1-888-225-5773 to report it.

Do not drive over a downed power line. Even if they’re not energized, downed wires can get entangled with your vehicle and cause further damage.

Get more safety tips at http://pse.com/safety/Pages/default.aspx.

NEW — 3:16 p.m. Sept. 30, 2015

Candidates for the only contested Newcastle City Council race separately convened in Issaquah Sept. 25, where they met with The Issaquah Press newspaper group General Manager Charles Horton and Managing Editor Kathleen R. Merrill.

Newcastle News is one of four newspapers in that group.

Victoria Sandoval

Linda Newing

Horton and Merrill quizzed Victoria Sandoval and Linda Newing on everything from traffic to city finances, as the two made their cases for a Newcastle News endorsement. Newcastle News previously asked the candidates a series of questions here and profiled them here in the lead-up to the election.

Energize Eastside

Puget Sound Energy’s plan to build higher-capacity electric transmission lines on the Eastside, in response to what they say is the region’s growing power demands, is a hot topic among Newcastle residents.

In a process that many decried, a Community Advisory Group recommended a route that goes directly through the heart of Newcastle last year.

Both candidates said they still have a lot of questions surrounding the Energize Eastside project.

Newing said she’s not convinced the higher-capacity transmission lines are actually needed. She added that PSE should look at other alternatives, such as undergrounding at a cost that won’t place the burden on resident pocketbooks.

“It’s step by step right now and I think we really need to do a little more homework on that project,” she said.

Sandoval said she didn’t know enough about the project to have a firm opinion, but did add that it doesn’t seem to benefit Newcastle. She mentioned the transmission lines would harm property values and change the city’s beautiful landscape.

“That doesn’t seem to be a win-win in any way,” she said.

Traffic

Both candidates agreed traffic is a problem in Newcastle, specifically on Coal Creek Parkway Southeast in the heart of the city.

Most people don’t feel safe driving on Coal Creek Parkway, Sandoval said. Speeding on the road is a problem, she added.

Far too many drivers spend a significant amount of time sitting in traffic on the road in the mornings and afternoons, Newing said.

Much of that congestion is a result of drivers looking to avoid a crowded Interstate 405, Newing said. So, the city should work with the Washington State Department of Transportation to fix that freeway in an effort to reduce gridlock on Coal Creek Parkway, she said.

Sandoval was less clear about her plans to alleviate congestion, but said the city needs to better prioritize the road and look into traffic light-timing studies.

City finances

A development boon has offered a boost to city finances recently, but it won’t last forever and council members will have to continue careful budgeting as forecasts see expenses outpacing revenues.

Newing suggested looking into equipment replacement as one cost-cutting measure.

“Do we have to buy new vehicles? Can we buy used vehicles?” she asked. “Can we stretch out computer or technology replacements another year?”

On the revenue side, Newing said she is concerned about businesses, knowingly or not, shortchanging the city out of possible license fee and sales tax revenue. She said the city needs to find a way to ensure that all businesses working here, according to the code, obtain a city of Newcastle business license.

Additionally, Newing noted that Newcastle could be missing out on quite a bit of money when businesses incorrectly collect sales tax. Newcastle has a 9.5 sales tax rate, she said, while Covington’s, for example, is 8.6 percent.

The city’s budget is hugely funded by property taxes, forcing the city to dip into the pockets of homeowners that might only be “skating by,” Sandoval said.

“I think that we need to diversify a whole lot more, our budget, so that we’re not so heavily dependent on property taxes, because every dollar represents a person,” she said.

Sandoval added that she would consider implementing a utility tax, which Newcastle currently does not have, as a means to boost revenue.

Both candidates stressed the need to reach out to businesses and encourage them to bring their enterprises to Newcastle.

Cast your vote

Sandoval said people should vote for her because she has a “fire inside for Newcastle.” She wants to do her part to make residents proud of their city, she said.

“I’m not in it for me. I’m in it for the now and the future,” she said.

Newing said she deeply cares about Newcastle, and has shown it through the invaluable relationships she has already built with residents, staff and volunteer groups.

“I think I’m more passionate than my opponent and I’m more committed,” Newing said. “I follow up and I follow through.”